Process and apparatus for preparing and packing food products



Sept. 4, 1934;

c. w. VOGT PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR PREPARING AND PACKING FOOD PRODUCTSOriginal Filed Dec. 27, 1927 INVENTOR Clarence/4. 2

BY MWMM ATTORNEYS fill-i! Patented Sept. 4, 1934 PROCESS AND APPARATUSFOR PREPARING AND PACKING FOOD PRODUCTS Clarence W. Vogt, Louisville,Ky., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Vogt Processes Incorporated,Louisville, Ky., a corporation of Delaware Original application December27, 1927, Serial No.-"242,667. Divided and this application 0ctoher-28;-1930;Serial No. 491,654

4 Claims.

This invention relates to a process and apparatus for preparing,including-packing, of ice cream, sherbets, fruit juices, eggs, vegetableoils, salves and other plastic or semi-plastic materials. This presentapplication is a division of my prior application Serial No. 242,667,filed Dec. 2'7, 1927.

The principal object of the invention is to provide an improved processand apparatus by means of which such materials may be effectivelyagitated while being chilled or frozen and the resulting product in asubstantially stiif-non-fiuent state is delivered into the containers inwhich it is to be stored and/or sold. The invention also includes amethod and means for delivering such product into such container in sucha manner as to prevent the encasement of air pockets (hereinafterreferred to as voids), or undue exposure of the material to surroundingatmosphere between the time of the chilling or freezing and thedeposition of the product into containers.

In the packing of ice cream and other similar frozen confections in acontainer, it is highly important that such material be packed withoutvoids since such material is usually sold by volume. The prevention ofvoids has not heretofore been considered a problem since the types ofcombined freezing and agitating apparatus in general used in theindustry have been of the batch or atmospheric pressure type, in whichgravity was mainly depended upon for the discharge of the readilyflowable product therefrom. Such apparatus will not satisfactorilydischarge a product frozen to the stiffness readily obtainable by theuse of the process and apparatusdisclosed in my hereinbeforementionedpatent. Heretofore all ice cream freezers have been equipped with openspouts or large orifices not connected in closed circuit or by a closedpassage with the container into which the product was dropped ordischarged. While several types of apparatus involving the use ofpressure to discharge the frozen product have been proposed, suchproposals have not met with adoption by the trade for one reason oranother, including inoperativeness, inability to obtain a satisfactorilysalable product, inability of such proposed apparatus to produce auniform or satisfactory incorpqration of the desired and necessarypercentage of air, andpossibly the failure on the part of the makers andusers of freezing and agitating equipment to fully realize theadvantages obtainable from freezing as much of the water content aspossible'before permitting the cessation of stirring or agitation. It isobvious that the stiffer the product is upon being discharged from thefreezing and agitating apparatus, the less the weight of the materialcan be depended upon to cause displacement of the air from the containeras same is being filled with the product. It is also a fact thatthe'increasing of the pressure upon a mass of partially frozen orsemi-fluid materiaL'such as ice cream, containing a substantialpercentage of air or other gas, causes a definite and measurable loss involume, due to the forcing out or the compressing of the gaseouscontent, and upon release of such pressure the mass will not re-expandto its original volume.

In the packing of ice cream it has also been proposed to place a batchof cream, which has been previously partly frozen in the common form ofbatch or atmospheric pressure type freezer, into a compressor or hopperfrom which it is subsequently drawn and/or forced through a nozzle intoa container in which it is frozen to a stiff condition. The use of suchhopper orcompressor involves the hereinbefore mentioned reduction orloss of volume due to forcing out the gaseous contents. This type ofapparatus has not been found to be practicable when the product isfrozen to the degree of stiffness readily obtainable by the .process andapparatus described in my hereinbefore mentioned patent, especially thetype employing alternate drawing and forcing because such a relativelystiff product cannot be sucked through a small orifice.

In the packing of fruit'juices, egg contents and certain othermaterials, the absence of voids is even more important, since airincluded in the container or package is often a cause for rapiddeterioration of the product. By simultaneously stirring and partiallyfreezing such products and. discharging them into containers directlyfrom the machine inwhich they are stirred and partially frozen inaccordance with my invention, they are protected from substantialcontamination by air, only the upper surfaces of the product in thecontainer being exposed thereto. The subsequent capping of a filledcontainer prevents the continued action of atmospheric air upon thematerial in the package since the container can be filled substantiallycompletely without the inclusion of an air space between the cover and"the body of the contents.

In the present invention, a processing machine is used in which theactual processing of the material may be carried on under pressure andfrom which the product is discharged directly into the container in suchmanner as to fill the same from the bottom up substantially free fromvoids. When applied to ice cream, the freezing and tained underpressure. In this manner a greater percentage of overrun can be whippedinto the material and the freezing can be carried to a more advancedstage than is possible with a batch freezer or a freezer from which theproduct is permitted to fall, using the force of gravity to assist inthe forcing out of the air from the container in which the product isbeing packed. As the product is extruded into the container, the

air, or other gas which has been whipped into .the product, forms theoverrun together with the expansion of the water content due to thepartial freezing thereof, and this gaseous content is expanded uponrelease of the pressure to or towards that of the atmosphere. A greateroverrun rather than a lesser overrun may be thereby obtained and thecontainer is filled without visible or objectionable voids.

By the use of the process and apparatus broad- 1y claimed in my'patentabove referred to, such a degree of stiffness may be obtained that ifthe ordinary five gallon can of ice cream be filled with the productdischarged from the apparatus and completely inverted without the lidhaving been applied thereto, there will be no loss or flowing ordropping out of any of the contents.

' Although it is possible with the so-called household ice cream freezerto freeze the material to such a degree of stiffness that it will notflow out of an open container when the same is inverted, these freezerswill not permit the incorporation or retention of the desired air,especially if the product is agitated while this degree of stiffness isbeing obtained.

The household type of freezer is practically obsolete so far as themanufacture of commercial ice cream is concerned, partially for theabove reason and partially because of its cumbersomeness andnon-adaptability to commercial operation. If the product be frozen withsuch a type of freezer to a degree of stiffness which would render samerelatively non-fluid, such material cannot be readily poured or forcedout of the freezing container, but requires a clipping or cutting of theproduct from such container. This dipping causes a loss of volume and amaterial reduction in the quality of the product by making the samesoggy and otherwise undesirable.

While the following specifications and attached drawing describe theprocess as particularly applied to the manufacture of ice cream, thisdescription is not to be taken as limiting the scope of the invention,which may be obviously applied to a large variety of products.

Other objects and features of the invention and the full nature thereofwill be apparent from the attached drawing and the following descriptionand claims.

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of one form of apparatus for carrying out theinvention, and

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section therethrough on a larger scale.

In the drawing there is shown a processing machine mounted upon thesupporting base 10, having a platform 11 for supporting a cup 12'or anyother receptacle for receiving the material or mix discharged from themachine. Mounted upon the base 10 and extending at an angle to the basethereof, there is a tubular cooling or processing barrel 13 having apower drive including a motor 14 mounted in a housing 15-and driving ashaft 16 through suitable reduction gears contained in a housing 1'7.

Mounted upon the support 10 there are supporting bars 18 having asupporting ring 19' mounted thereon in which there may be removablyplaced in inverted position a jar 20 for containing the mix to beprocessed. The mouth or discharge end of the Jet 20 is adapted to extendinto a reservoir 21 so that the mix contained therein remains at aconstant level, thus providing a constant head for gravity feed througha ball valve 22 which is controlled by a rod 23 operated by a handle 24.

The reservoir 21 communicates by a valve controlled passage 25 with acylinder 26 in which there is reciprocably mounted a piston 27 driven bymeans of a cam 29 on the shaft 16. The shaft passes through packingglands 28 mounted at the base of the cylinder. The lower end of thepiston 2'7 is provided with a roller 30 adapted to engage or ride uponthe periphery of the cam 29 for 1 causing said piston to reciprocatewithin the cylinder 26. A spring 26a seated against a shoulder 27a. onthe piston 27, serves to return the piston on its downward stroke.

The head of the cylinder is provided with a vent 31 for admitting fluid,such as air, carbon dioxide or any other material, to a chamber 32. Thehead of the piston is provided with a ball valve 33 for controlling thepassage of fluid from the chamber 32 to the passage 34 extendingcentrally and longitudinally of said piston. A passage 35 in the wall ofthe piston is controlled by a ball valve 36 and communicates with thepassage 25 for admitting the mix to the central passage 34. On theupstroke of the piston, the fluid is compressed in the chamber 32 and isforced past the ball valve 33 into the passage 34 within the piston.Similarly a shoulder 27a compresses the mix in passage 25 and forces itpast the ball valve 36 into the passage 34. On the return stroke the mixand fluid, if used, are discharged from the lower end of passage 34 tothe lower end of a freezing, processing or temperature changing chamber37. Said chamber is formed between parallel concentric walls spacedapart to only a very short distance to leave a thin passagetherebetween. One wall is formed by the elongated tube and the other bythe periphery of the shaft 38 which extends through said tube and iskeyed to the driving shaft 16 so as to be rotated thereby.

The tubular wall of the chamber 37 is in spaced relation with a tubularwall 40 to form a brine chamber so that the brine surrounds saidprocessing chamber from one end to the other. Around the wall 40 isinsulation 39 and around the latter is the barrel 13.

After the mix and air, or other gas, if desired, are pumped by theaction of the piston 27 into the bottom of the thin-annular freezingchamber 37, they are forced upwardly at an incline therein andcontinuously agitated and whipped by the action of the whipping blades41 mounted on the rotating shaft 38. As the fluid and mix are whippedtogether and forced upwardly in said processing chamber, the mix isgradually cooled or frozen by the low temperature of the brine cooiedwall of the chamber 37. Since a certain pressure is required to advancethe frozen material through the chamber and since the action of thepiston 2'7 is capable of forcing the mix and air into the processingchamber at a pressure high enough to so advance the material, it isevident that the processing in the chamber is carried out under pressuregreater than atmospheric. The mix is cooled or frozen to the desiredplasticity when it reaches the end of the chamber 37 and is dischargedinto a whipping chamber-42, where it is whipped without further coolingor freezing action since said chamber is not surrounded or cooled by thebrine.

The product is forced from the whipping chamber through the nozzle 43and a conduit 143 into any suitable container 12, such as a can, cup ormold. The pressure feed of the freezer, as distinguished from the usualgravity feed, enables a container to'be filled from the bottom up byusing the flexible tube or conduit 143, whereby the operator may projectthe end of said conduit into the container near the bottom thereof andwithdraw the same as the container fills. Thus the air is forced fromthe top of the container which eliminates formation of air pocketscaused by filling the container from the top. This is particularlydesirable in filling molds.

For the purpose of controlling the fluid supply through the vent 31, arotatable valve in the form'of a collar 131 is mounted about thecylinder 26, said collar being provided with an elongated slot 132disposed at an angle so that by the rotation of the valve collar throughthe medium of the operating handle 133 the area of the vent may bevaried. Thus the fluid may be entirely shut off when the natureof thematerial being processed makes the addition of such fluid unnecessary orundesirable.

It will be noted that the blades 41 are in the nature of heavy U-shapedwire staples extending through suitable apertures in the shaft 38 andsecured therein, the heads of the staples acting as paddles. The bladesare positioned so as to approach the wall very closely, but are freefrom actual engagement therewith, thus preventing undue wear upon thesurface, and preventing a film from accumulating upon the wall, butgiving a desired whipping action to the mix while passing therethrough.

' The brine is introduced through a pipe 44 to an annular recess 45 inthe end fitting 46 so as to surround the processing chamber and passabout the wall thereof to an annular chamber 47 and a lower fitting 48,from whence it is discharged through a passage 49. To produce a uniformproduct it is advantageous to control the flow of the brine by thecontrol mechanism such as that described and claimed in said Patent1,783,864.

In the filling of a container by the'apparatus herein described, theflexible connnection 143 is manually withdrawn from the container by theoperator as the container is filled. It is apparent however that thisoperation can easily be performed mechanically or that the container maybe gradually lowered to produce the same result. The important featureis that the container be filled from the bottom up.

In the freezing of fruit juices, eggs. and other materials in which thepresence of, or contamination with, air is undesirable, such materialsmay be frozen and discharged from the machine without the encasement ofair into the frozen material, since air may be excluded from the,chamber, and since the discharge from the processing chamber into thecontainer is effected in a closed conduit, and the entrainment of airinto the product is avoided.

It is obvious that in connection with the processing of any materialsthat the use of the jar 20 may be dispensed with and such liquid may besupplied directly to the reservoir 21 in a manner to prevent thedissolving or entrainment of air into the liqui In the processing of icecream, fruit juices, eggs and other products, it is usually desired thatthe product be further frozen or chilled. This is usually accomplishedby placing the filled containers within a chamber maintained at asumciently low temperature to cause the additional setting or freezing,or until the required degree of hardness is reached.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. An apparatus for treating and packing material, including aprocessing chamber having walls spaced apart to form a comparativelythinpassage therebetween, means for forcing a liquid or semi-liquidmaterial through said chamber under superatmospheric pressure, means forcooling one of said walls to a low temperature to change the plasticityof the material during its flow, means within said thin space foragitating the material during its flow through said space, and a closedconduit attached to said chamber and adapted to continuously conduct thematerial from said chamber into a container adjacent to the bottom ofthe latter for filling said container from the bottom up with thematerial discharged from said chamber to prevent the formation of voidsin the material in the container.

2. The method of preparing and packing material suitable for humanconsumption, which includes forcing a continuous stream of said materialin a comparatively thin confined layer over a heat transfer surface,subjecting said surface to the action of a refrigerating medium toincrease the stiffness of the material, mechanically agitating saidmaterial during its flow through said space, and continuously deliveringthe material of increased stiffness directly, without interruption offlow, into a container adjacent to the surface of accumulated materialin the container to prevent atmospheric air from being entrained withthe material as it is delivered into the container.

3. An apparatus for treating and packing material including a processingchamber, means for continuously forcing liquid or semi-liquid materialthrough, said chamber under superatmospheric pressure, means for coolingone of the walls of said chamber to a low temperature to change theplasticity of the material during its fiow, means for agitating thematerial in said chamber while maintaining the material under saidpressure, and a closed conduit attached to said chamber and adapted tocontinuously conduct the material from said chamber into a containeradjacent to the bottom of the latter for filling said container from thebottom up with the material discharged from said chamber and to preventvoids in the material in the container.

4. The method of preparing and packing ice cream and other frozencomestibles', including comingling a gas and a liquid mix inpredetermined relative proportions, continuously forcing a stream of thesame through a processing chamber under superatmospheric pressure,cooling the stream to a low temperature while passing through saidchamber to partially freeze the liquid to a plastic condition, andconducting the stream of aerated plastic material from said chamber intoa container adjacent to the bottom of the latter and at successivelyhigher levels to fill the container from the bottom up, and to spreadthe delivered material over the material already in the container andprevent voids in the material collected in the container.

' CLARENCE W. VOGT.

DISCLAIMER 1,972,253.Clarence W. Vogt, Louisville, Ky. -PRocEss AmiAPPARATUS FOR PRE- PARING AND PACKING F001) PRODUCTS. Patent datedSeptember 4, 1934. Disclaimer filed January 25; 1940, by the asslgnee,The G2 idler Corporation, Hereby enters disclaimer of the subject matterof claims 3 and 4 of said Letters Patent.

[Qficial Gazette February 13, 1940.

